- Craig Foster apologized to Sam Kerr for his comments last week
- Foster said he was mistaken in his initial response
- Says that racism cannot be committed against a white person
Craig Foster has apologized to Matildas superstar Sam Kerr for his comments about her alleged comment to a British police officer that saw her accused of racial harassment.
Australians were stunned last week when the Daily Mail exclusively revealed Kerr had been accused of racially harassing a London police officer.
The words Kerr used are controversial and she is variously reported to have called the officer a ‘stupid white b*****d’, ‘stupid white PC’ or ‘stupid white cop’.
Her legal team is now reportedly prepared to claim that she used the words “stupid white cop.”
The charge stems from an alleged dispute over a taxi fare in January last year, when Kerr was accused of using abusive, threatening, insulting words that caused alarm or distress.
Craig Foster has apologized profusely to Sam Kerr following her alleged racism saga
Kerr is accused of racially abusing a police officer and will appear in court in 2025
Kerr has spoken only to plead not guilty and confirm her identity in court. She faces a four-day trial that could lead to her being deported or even jailed.
Foster said on Thursday that Football Australia should consider stripping Kerr of the captaincy if she were proven guilty, but has since changed her mind on the issue.
“Like many, I wrongly believed that comments referring to any color that were discriminatory, demeaning or hostile were a form of racism. I apologize to Sam for this mistake,” Foster wrote in a lengthy statement on X.
Foster went on to say that white people cannot experience racism because they are not part of a marginalized group, citing the Diversity Council of Australia’s definition of racism.
“Is that the same as measuring measuring when the same terms or phrases are used against marginalized groups is the question,” Foster wrote.
‘The answer is no. Because the power difference and therefore the impact are enormously and fundamentally different.
“Those of us who are not from minority backgrounds cannot possibly know what it feels like to be told we don’t belong, don’t speak the language, don’t look good, to ‘go back to where you came from’ or face to have experienced intergenerational racism.’
The former Socceroo said the definitions of racism “are not intended to protect me as a white, Anglo-Australian man, nor as a white police officer who has even greater legal and racial power.”
Foster said the whole saga had exposed a misconception about racism in Australia
Foster said he is committed to ensuring that no other Australian experiences personal, institutional or systemic racism
“That’s because I can’t experience racism in Australia,” Foster said
‘My right to speak is not questioned, I am part of the cultural, racial and linguistic majority, I am not attacked because of my name, skin colour, headdress or religion as many are, and I am made to feel have the right to speak. and that is why I, like many of you, am deeply committed to ensuring that no other Australian experiences personal, institutional or systemic racism.”
Foster said the power of sport is that it confronts us with ‘difficult, controversial and challenging issues’
He ended by writing that the journey to a better future is not easy and mistakes along the way will be inevitable.